The ad generated conversations on social media sites such as Twitter, as people reacted to the unusual break.

One viewer praised it as "groundbreaking", while another noted that it was "one of the rare moments I've purposely watched an ad break".

All the brands involved took part in the online conversation, including Confused.com’s mascot Brian the Robot, who has his own Twitter handle.

The full ad break was released on YouTube immediately after it aired on television, and has had nearly 140,000 views. It will also be shown in cinemas before 'The Lego Movie', but PHD said the TV airing would not be repeated and was a "one-off".

How an excruciating seven-month quest for an idea Steve Jobs didn't hate gave birth to one of the funniest, most effective campaigns in Apple's history, told by the writers, crew and actors who created it 10 years ago.